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15 <br /> individuals are aware of all the services available to them. A primary goal of the Food Council is <br /> to break down siloes. <br /> Nancy Coston said NC 360 is coming out which will incorporate resources for the entire state. <br /> Once that happens, it will make it easier for internal referrals and also for someone in the <br /> community to check everything they need. All nonprofits need to get their information on line <br /> and this will take time. It will be a warm hand off. <br /> Chair Rich asked about if Justice United and the faith-based community it they were helping get <br /> out the information out. Ms. Heger said faith-based organizations are important and they have <br /> contact with some, but not all. <br /> Reflecting on the day Maggie Chotas <br /> Ms. Chotas invited responses from Commissioners about what they learned from the retreat, <br /> including their thoughts about how a Systems Thinking framework might be different from the <br /> way we tend to explore problems. She asked Commissioners to reflect on the deeper <br /> questions/challenges arising. <br /> Commissioner McKee said he is encouraged by what he heard and what was done during the <br /> day, but wanted more information about the supporting data presented about hunger. One in <br /> five kids or people in the County are hungry—that figure raised questions about how it was <br /> gathered, how it was determined and how it applies to one demographic group or another. He <br /> emphasized gross wages doesn't give a true picture because it is not spendable income — it's <br /> not money in your pocket. He would like more real numbers as close to facts as possible. <br /> Commissioner Marcoplos noted he appreciated the presentation and the processes. He said he <br /> thought it was true they would make better decisions the more they incorporated systems <br /> thinking and wanted to explore how could they incorporate this into their decision-making. He <br /> suggested for smaller issues they don't anticipate taking as much time, to just keep this in mind <br /> and don't spend a lot of time on it. But for larger issues which will take a lot of time, have a <br /> dedicated work session where we do what we did today and spend time admiring the program. <br /> Might not be able to do it for everything, but we could try it once in the spring and in the fall with <br /> a topic and see how it works for us. <br /> Chair Rich emphasized the need for flexibility in determining when to apply systems thinking. <br /> She expressed not wanting systems thinking to stop us from having free flowing ideas like what <br /> would be needed in emergency situations or items that come up throughout the year that might <br /> need some money spent on them. <br /> Commissioner Greene said the day was a good introduction to systems thinking and she <br /> wondered about what the next steps are for the food/hunger issue. The board has started to <br /> explore the topic at the retreat and she wanted to know how the board will bring a solution <br /> forward. <br /> Commissioner Bedford said this type of thinking does take time and wondered what it might look <br /> like if they applied it— rather than the usual Task Force. For example, she brought up PreK and <br /> reflected the focusing question for PreK could be, "Why aren't children ready for kindergarten?" <br /> This type of thinking process may help with this issue. She mentioned the understanding to <br /> challenge assumptions and make sure the right question will be asked. <br />